Everyone enjoys a good ghost story. Many are intrigued by the supernatural. We receive quite a few inquiries concerning supernatural stories surrounding the tragic deaths that occurred on the Eastland on July 24, 1915. Many of these queries initiate from viewers of the Disney Channel's series So Weird, whose first episode was based on the Eastland Disaster. Other inquiries are brought forth from those interested with the supernatural or ghosts in general.

Public interest in ghost stories surrounding the Eastland Disaster have created presentation content for Richard Crowe of Chicago Supernatural Tours, who has offered tours of ghostly sites in and around Chicago since 1979. Mr. Crowe has said that many people have heard muffled screams and have seen human forms floating in the water, or hovering over the Chicago River near the disaster site between Clark and LaSalle Streets. "The weird thing about all this is that the people who usually tell me about these screams don't even know that there was a major boat accident in the area years ago," Crowe said. He has also written a book, Chicago's Street Guide To The Supernatural.

Another question we're frequently asked surrounds the old Second Regiment Armory building at 1058 W. Washington, Chicago. This structure became the temporary morgue where over 500 Eastland victims were laid out for identification by friends and family. Since 1988, this building has housed Harpo Studios, where the television show Oprah is produced. It is told, but unconfirmed, that there have been sightings of a gray mist moving through the halls, called 'The Gray Lady'. It is said to be a despondent woman crying for her lost children. Other unusual events are rumored to occur there as well. Staff members hear whispering voices, the laughter of children, sobbing sounds, old-time music, the clinking of glasses and a large group of footsteps on the lobby staircase. Nearby doors often slam shut without assistance.

Given these accounts, where is the scientific proof?
To begin answering this question, we'll look at this by definition:

su·per·nat·u·ral, adj. 15th Century.
1: Of or relating to existence outside the natural world.
2: Attributed to a power that seems to violate or go beyond natural forces and laws of nature.
3: Of or relating to a deity or spirit.
4: Of or relating to the immediate exercise of divine power; miraculous.
5: Of or relating to the miraculous.

ghost, n. pre-12th Century.
1: The spirit of a dead person, especially one believed to appear in bodily likeness to living persons or to haunt former habitats.
2: The center of spiritual life; the soul.
3: A demon or spirit.
4: A returning or haunting memory or image.

"Supernatural forces, if they exist, cannot be observed, measured, or recorded by the procedures of science - that's simply what the word "supernatural" means. There can be no limit to the kinds and shapes of supernatural forces and forms the human mind is capable of conjuring up from "nowhere." Scientists therefore have no alternative but to ignore "claims" of the existence of supernatural forces and causes. This exclusion is a basic position that must be stoutly adhered to by scientists or their entire system of processing information will collapse. To put it another way, if science must include a supernatural realm, it will be forced into a game where there are no rules. Without rules, no scientific observation, explanation, or prediction can enjoy a high probability of being a correct picture of the real world." -- Arthur N. Strahler.

There's plenty of evidence for the supernatural, including thousands of eyewitness accounts, written reports, and personal testimonials. What there isn't is 'scientific evidence' for the supernatural. That's because science relies on replicable experiments, and the supernatural (by definition) is outside of the natural laws which govern such experiments.